Experts say a NATO force would defeat Putin's army in Ukraine

Dr Mendoza stressed that 'Macron's statement was not a considered, planned one, but designed to spark conversation among the alliance.' Matthew Savill, military sciences director at the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI) agreed with Dr Mendoza's assessment of Macron's comments. 'This doesn't – at first look – seem to be about the deployment of Western personnel into a direct combat role, but rather a presence in Ukraine that would either restart in-country training, building upon pre-war relationships, or be about providing personnel for support functions which would help the Ukrainians,' he said. 'Both would be useful contributions to Ukrainian forces and a possible signal of sustained international support,' Mr Savill said. 'Macron might have in mind personnel supporting Ukrainian logistics and taking a more hands-on role in ensuring that Western-supplied equipment or weapons are meeting Ukrainian needs and getting to the right places. 'Any such presence would need to be able to defend itself, and so would have to consider what intelligence support and ground-based air defences (for example) would need to accompany any deployment,' he continued.